


Whatever a Spider Can

by DoctorBane



Category: Spider-Man (Comics)
Genre: AU, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-05-09
Updated: 2014-05-09
Packaged: 2018-01-24 03:43:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,029
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1590437
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DoctorBane/pseuds/DoctorBane
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I hope this was good, it being my first Spider-Man fic.  I hope I got a sense of Spider-Man's strength in this fic.</p></blockquote>





	Whatever a Spider Can

Benjy Parker was slightly embarrassed of his dad.  
He knew he shouldn’t be. It was just that all the other kids at school had dad’s who went off to fight in other countries, or went to the gym a lot, or swam. His dad never did any of that. His parents told him that when his dad was young, he worked at the Daily Bugle newspaper. Benjy couldn’t think of a job duller than that, even if he did take pictures of Spider-Man. At the end of the day, his father had worked in a building with a lot of old farts who were probably over 1000000 years old. What was there to be proud about that?

Peter Parker wanted desperately to be swinging around the city. Walking was just so damn... slow. He’d been able to swing across the whole of Manhattan in under 11 minutes when he was still Spider-Man, so he’d never bothered learning to drive. Idiot. M.J could still drive him sometimes, but she was usually working.  
Oh well. Walking was good exercise anyway. About the only exercise he got since he quit being Spider-Man. That and playing with Benjy. That always made him happy, and took away some of the need to move. He could swear ever since that spider bit him, he had ADHD.  
Benjy’s school was still about five minutes away. He wished he could sprint there; he’d get there in about 30 seconds. But that would lead to someone spotting him, and putting two and two together. Then his old enemies would come after him and his family. This was why he’d stopped being Spider-Man in the first place, when M.J became pregnant. It was difficult – after all, what about his responsibilities to the city? But then he realised that, no matter the cost, his responsibilities were for his family first – anyone else would have to wait.

“Hey Parker – I bet my dad could beat up your dad!”  
This outburst came from Harry Thompson. Harry had been making Benjy’s life a misery since kindergarten, always making comments about Benjy’s scrawny physique, his lack of sporting skills, his bright red hair. Benjy always tried to ignore him, but Harry was one of those people who would keep on bugging you anyway, until you felt like you could just smash their heads through the table. Benjy would have done this long ago, if not for two things: Harry Thompson had about a foot on him in height, and Benjy was a pacifist. At least, he was when it came to Harry.  
“Your dad’s such a pussy, Parker! All he did was stay at home with his chemistry set and his camera, while real men like my dad went off and fought in the Army,” Harry jeered.  
Despite his embarrassment of his father, Benjy couldn’t let Harry pick him apart like that.  
“Yes Harry. Your dad’s such a man. That’s why he gives you those black eyes,” Benjy said back. “I know you say you walk into doors a lot, but you’re never that clumsy on the football field. So yes, I’ll bear in mind that my father isn’t a real man because he never touches me.”  
For a moment, Harry wasn’t sure what to say. Had this little shit just said what he thought he’d said? Was he mocking his family? His mind’s cogs shifted slowly. Benjy could almost hear them stalling inside the stupid boy’s head. Then, anger flashed into Harry’s eyes, and Benjy realised he shouldn’t have antagonised the bigger kid.  
When would he learn not to mock the afflicted?

When Peter arrived at school, he was horrified to see Benjy with an ugly purple mark on his face. He could also see him limping, and the way he was cradling his stomach, he would have bet his last dime – which was more or less all he had left in his wallet – there was a hell of a mark there as well.  
“What happened, Benjy? Who did this to you?” Peter asked him, kneeling down so he was at a similar height to his son.  
“Another boy,” Benjy mumbled. “He was saying things about you. He called you a... what’s a pussy?”  
Peter was taken aback. His son was nine, and yet Peter had to remember he was still very innocent. Not like this other kid. “Never mind that. You stood up for me?” Peter felt gratitude for his son, who was still willing to stand up for him. He also felt extremely sorry for him, and wanted to throttle whoever had done this to his son.  
“Benjy, listen to me. You need to tell me who did this to you. What was his name?” Peter asked him, almost begged him. His son whispered something.  
“I need you to speak up. What was his name?”  
“Harry Thompson.”  
Thompson. All of a sudden, Peter was back at high school, before the spider bite. Flash Thompson, giving him wedgies. Flash Thompson, mocking him. Flash Thompson, stealing his lunch money. And finally, Flash Thompson beating him up when Peter tried to stop him from doing the same to someone else.  
He could hear someone calling him. All of a sudden, he remembered where he was.  
“Dad? Are you okay?” Benjy was looking worried.  
“I’m fine, son. I just... knew someone with that last name,” Peter answered. He felt like he could just go find Flash Thompson and snap his neck. Not only did he have to torment him, he had to go and fuck up his kid so he’d grow just like him. A bully. “Come on, Benjy, let’s go see the principal.”  
“What for, Dad?” Benjy, once again worried.  
“We’re going to take care of this bullying matter for good.”

They were walking home, when it happened. They’d finished with the principal, and were in a good mood. Principal Coulson had said that when Benjy came back on Monday, he was going to sort everything with Harry. Peter and Benjy were talking about a favourite subject of theirs – science – when, for the first time in forever, Peter’s spider-sense started to tingle. It had been so long since he’d had to use it, he’d forgotten quite how to focus on the danger. As it was, the danger came very quickly. There was an explosion from a building they were walking by, which was the bank. In the split second it took for Peter to react, he grabbed hold of Benjy and shielded him from the blast. The heat and fire burnt most of his jumper off – his trousers thankfully unharmed – and the force sent him and Benjy flying across the street. Despite being badly stunned, Peter still kept hold of Benjy, but the question was – was he alive?  
“Benjy, are you okay? Answer me, buddy, answer me.”  
Benjy nodded fearfully, but then his eyes opened wide in fear just as Peter’s spider-sense went off again. This time Peter focused on it, and all of a sudden, he was looking down at himself, and his son. His son was staring, terrified, right at what was approaching them. He could see, through the threat’s eyes; that he was getting closer and closer to them. Then, he was back in his own head, and boy he was not used to this. He looked up at the threat just as it swung a club at him.  
Benjy was grabbed by the man who had just hurt his dad.  
“Looks like you’re our hostage!” the man said, before turning and throwing him roughly into a parked Land Rover. Benjy screamed for his dad.  
“Shut up, you little fuck!” another man said. “Shut up or I’ll kill you.”  
The first man got in the passenger seat, whilst the second started the engine, just as sirens could be heard. As the Land Rover tore away, none of the passengers could be prepared for what was about to happen.

Peter stood up, just as his spider-sense allowed him to focus on the sounds of his son as he was taken further away. Before he knew what he was doing, he was already sprinting after it. 

10, 20, 30, 40, 50 mph. He had never run so fast in his life – had never needed to, he could just swing everywhere. Not anymore. He hadn’t worn those web shooters for years, and he didn’t carry them with him. He could see the Land Rover ahead, overtaking cars and powering through a red light. It just managed to avoid a collision. Horns were blaring. Peter vaulted over a taxi, dodged around a Mercedes, but wasn’t quite so lucky with the car next to it. He smacked into the side, leaving a large dent, and rocked the car. He kept running though. He wasn’t going to let these bastards take his son. He’d kill them first.

In the Land Rover, the two men, named Larry and Oliver, were laughing gleefully. As far as they were concerned, they were going to get away scot free. As soon as they were safely away, they’d kill the kid. Neither of them had particularly liked kids, and it always made them laugh to watch kids crying before the knife silenced them. However, Oliver, who was driving, looked in the rear view mirror to see if there were any cops yet. When he saw the man sprinting after them at over 50 mph, he had to do a double take.  
“What the fuck? Larry, are you seeing this?” Larry looked behind him, and also did a double take.  
“What the fuck is this shit? Is that Captain America or something? Or, like, Bruce Banner? He can run fast, right?” Larry thought he was going crazy. Well, crazier.  
“No, Bruce Banner only runs fast when he’s the Hulk, dumbass. That guy don’t look big or green,” Oliver said. “Anyway, it don’t matter. Just shoot the guy.”  
Benjy was terrified, not only of the men who were kidnapping him, but also of whoever was chasing them. However, curiosity won him over, and he looked out of the back window.  
Just in time to see his father get shot.

“Dammit!” Peter growled, arm stinging. “Have to avoid getting shot; you used to do it all the time.” This time, when the guy who had taken his son leaned out of the window, he leapt to the left, abandoning his shoes in midair. He landed sideways on the building wall, and kept up the pace. People on the sidewalk below were pointing up at him, some screaming, and some cheering. He didn’t care. All he cared about was that he was out of range of the gun, and better still, had drawn next to the car. Grimacing, he leapt at the Land Rover.

Peter landed on the hood of the car. He knew at least one of the guy’s was very strong, maybe even super-strong, so he had to be quick. He ripped off the front of the hood, so that the engine was exposed. Then, he reached in grabbed hold of it, and wrenched it out of the car, before hurling it away. Then, he slammed both of the men’s heads together, knocking them out. He then went round to the back, ripped off the back door, grabbed his son, and leapt at the side of a building. The Land Rover continued on, flying into the river Hudson. 

Peter managed to get down off the building and get away before the police arrived. He noticed that Benjy had a cut on his face.  
“Benjy, are you okay?” Peter asked him.  
“I’m fine Dad, just shaken. Dad, how did you do all that back there? Are you... Spider-Man?” Benjy asked, completely awestruck.  
“I... I used to be Spider-Man. But when your mother became pregnant with you, I stopped, so that I could help raise you,” Peter explained.  
“But what about all the people? Don’t they need your help?” Benjy asked, confused.  
“You are my priority, Benjy. You and your mother. It’s not like New York is short on superheroes anyway.” Peter was tired. “Anyway, let’s go, we need to get that cut cleaned....” Peter stopped.  
“What is it Dad?”  
Benjy’s cut had healed.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope this was good, it being my first Spider-Man fic. I hope I got a sense of Spider-Man's strength in this fic.


End file.
